Cluster mill with cantilevered rolls

ABSTRACT

Cluster mill with cantilevered rolls designed mainly for rolling of workpieces comprises two cantilevered working rolls of small diameter and long body, and four cantilevered back-up rolls of relatively great diameter. Thanks to the small diameter of the working rolls a better elongation of the rolled metal is obtained, the whole rolling process being more economical. A few passes, up to several dozens of passes may be cut on working surfaces of the working rolls, a great rigidity of said rolls being maintained, and thus metal workpieces may be precisely rolled. The working rolls and back-up rolls are carried in a frame composed of plates and which are shiftable perpendicularly to the rolling line on columns. The working rolls are adjusted symetrically to the rolling line. A driving shaft sliding in a second driving shaft drives the working rolls through an assembly of gears, couplings being thereby eliminated. The drive from a common driving shaft may be transferred to the second driving shaft through bevel gears or through a frontal gear coupling or from an individual driving motor. It is possible to combine a cluster mill with cantilevered rolls with every method of cluster mill setting, as hitherto known.

ted States Patent [191 Gawliitowicz et al.

CLUSTER MILL WITH CANTILEVERED ROLLS [73] Assignee:

Filed:

Inventors:

Appl. No.:

Jan J. Gawlikowicz, Jerzy Krywult, Roman Wusatoxski, czynski, all ofGliwice; Aleksander Makomaski, Katowice; Leopold Sikora, Swietochlowice,all of Poland Instytut Melaturgii Zelaza, Gliwice, Poland June 3, 1970Foreign Application Priority Data June 7, 1969 Poland ..T-l 34056 April14,1970 Poland ..P-l40003 US. Cl.

Int. Cl

..B2lb 29/00, B2lb 3l/l6 Field of Search ..72/237, 240, 241, 242, 243,

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Sendzimir ..72/237 Worthington..72/243 Sendzimir et ul ..72/242 Rastelli ..72/234 Schoffman ..72/234Jozef Gar- Feb. 27, 1973 Primary Examiner-Milton S. Mehr Attorney-IrvinA. Lavine [57] ABSTRACT Cluster mill with cantilevered rolls designedmainly for rolling of workpieces comprises two cantilevered workingrolls of small diameter and long body, and four cantilevered back-uprolls of relatively great diameter. Thanks to the small diameter of theworking rolls a better elongation of the rolled metal is obtained, thewhole rolling process being more economical.

A few passes, up to several dozens of passes may be cut on workingsurfaces of the working rolls, a great rigidity of said rolls beingmaintained, and thus metal workpieces may be precisely rolled.

The working rolls and back-up rolls are carried in a frame composed ofplates and which are shiftable perpendicularly to the rolling line oncolumns. The work ing rolls are adjusted symetrically to the rollingline. A driving shaft sliding in a second driving shaft drives theworking rolls through an assembly of gears, couplings being therebyeliminated. The drive from a common driving shaft may be transferred tothe second driving shaft through bevel gears or through a frontal gearcoupling or from an individual driving motor.

It is possible to combine a cluster mill with cantilevered rolls withevery method of cluster mill setting, as hitherto known.

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PATENTEBFEBZTISB SHEET 13UF 13 Fig 13 CLUSTER MILL WITH CANTILEVEREDROLLS There are known roll supports or roll stands, particu larly forstrip rolling mills, provided with two working rolls and four back-uprolls, but either the back-up rolls or both the working rolls andback-up rolls are journaled on side necks of these rolls, and so arecantilevered.

Such mounting makes access to the working rolls and to the guides of therolls difficult and renders impossible their correct and rapidadjustment, which in turn causes some irregularities in the rollingprocess.

There are also known roll supports with two cantilevered work rolls, inwhich one or two of the work rolls are driven. In driving two workingrolls the stands have no possibility of being moved in a directiontransverse to the rolling line.

In these stands the whole driving gear of the rolls and of theiradjustment is located inside the housing fastened to a base plate.

These stands have, however, a number of disadvantages, namely: thepossibility of using only one or at most two grooves in the workingrolls due to a roll bend that increases by the third power withincreases in the length of the roll barrel; the impossibility of usingcantilevered back-up rolls with large diameters, to limit the amount ofbend which increases under the pressure of the stock being rolled in themill; the necessity of frequent shut-downs of the rolling mill, due torapid wear of the grooves, especially in finishing stands.

An object of this invention is to provide for the rolling of metals,mainly rods, on cantilevered working rolls of small diameter withpractical elimination of bending of the working rolls even for a greatlength of working roll surface, on which a number of grooves, dependingon need, are made, with the capability of moving the rolls in adirection transverse to the rolling line.

This object has been achieved by a construction of a cluster mill withcantilevered rolls, which have two working rolls and four back-up rollswith diameters greater than those of the working rolls.

The driven working rolls are mounted in hearings in two end plates,while the back-up rolls are journaled outside these plates.

These plates are joined together by means of connecting members so thatthey form a rigid frame which can be shifted perpendicularly to therolling line on columns located inside the mill.

In this frame two pinion gears are mounted at a fixed distance from oneanother, one being a driving pinion gear formed with a splined shaft,through which it is connected with the main driving shaft located in therear plate.

These pinion gears mesh with pinion gears of the lower and upper workingrolls, whereby the pinion gears of the working rolls do not mesh witheach other.

The pinion gears of the working rolls connected rigidly with the workingrolls are mounted in frames that permit their rotary movement to providefor adlower part of the stand at the side of the main drive, located inthe rear plate or side plate of the frame, and is used for roughdisplacement.

Further, on the side plate of the frame, on the drive side, the rollstand is provided with a mechanism consisting also of the drivingcylinder and locks, used for precise displacement of the rolls in adirection transverse to the rolling line.

The movable frame together with the bearings of the working rolls andthe back-up rolls, the aforementioned set of gears, screw mechanism foradjusting the gap between the rolls and the mechanism for displacementof the working rolls, for protection against harmful externalconditions, are located inside the mill housmg.

To the side surface of the movable frame on the side of the rolls thereis fixed a shield sealed to the housing. Thus, during displacement ofthe frame, all parts located inside the mill housing are protected. Forthe protection of parts provided inside the mill housing duringadjustment of the rolls, the mill is provided with sealing plates andtwo sealing inserts.

The cluster mill with cantilevered rolls in one embodiment of theinvention, with a view of increasing the rigidity of the cantileveredworking rolls, is provided with back-up rolls journaled on both sides inbearings carried in pivotal plates located outside the side plate of theframe, which is movable on columns.

For adjustment of the pivotal plates the roll stand is provided witheccentric shafts mounted in end plates of the movable frame and, fordriving the eccentric shafts a screw mechanism is provided.

The cluster mill, in another embodiment of the invention, in order tofurther increase the rigidity of the cantilevered working rolls, isprovided with pivotal plates mounted in rockers, which for moving to andfrom one another have: two screws with left-hand and right-hand threads,nuts, ties, bolts and bolts with sleeves; for a rapid replacement ofback-up rolls it is provided with shafts protruding from pivotal plateswith a mechanism for effecting their relative movement. I

The constructions of the cluster mill with cantilevered rolls, accordingto the invention, do not have the disadvantages of roll stands usedheretofore. On the contrary, they have a number of important advantages,the main one of which is the capability of using small diameter workingrolls which enables the stock being rolled to be intensively lengthened.

The second essential advantage of the constructions disclosed herein isthe capability of employing working rolls with long barrels, on whichgrooves can be cut, depending on needs and pass dimensions.

A further advantage is that the roll stand has no connecting members fordriving the working rolls, whereby, in adjusting the working rolls gap,the gearing characteristic is not subject to any changes.

Another advantage of the constructions discussed above is thepossibility of exact displacement and setting into the required positionof the working rolls, on which grooves are cut.

The invention will be explained in detail in connection with theaccompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a view vertical cross-sectional of the roll support in acluster mill;

FIG. 2 is an end elevation of the working rolls;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the roll stand taken along the line BB ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of roll support taken along the line CC ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the roll support taken along the line DDof FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the roll support taken along the line E-Eof FIG. 1',

FIG. 8 is the sectional view of the roll support taken along the lineF--F of FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is a view in side elevation of an'alternate embodiment of rollsupport;

FIG. 10 is an end elevation of the working rolls of the embodiment ofthe roll stand of FIG. 9;

FIG. 1 1 is a sectional view of the embodiment of roll stand of FIG. 9taken along line GG thereof;

FIG. 12 is a view in side elevation of a third embodiment of a rollstand;

FIG. 13 shows another embodiment of a roll stand in side elevation takenfrom the side of the working rolls with parts in section to show aportion of a screw mechanism for adjustment of the gap between rolls.

As shown in FIG. 1, the cluster mill with cantilevered rolls comprisesthe housing 1 of the roll support stand and two shiftable plates 2,3,mounted on four columns 4, see also FIG. 5.

The columns 4 are fixed in the housing 1 and the rear plate 5. Thecolumns 4 fulfill at the same time the function of connecting thehousing 1 and the rear plate 5. The plates 2 and 3 are joined togetherby means of connecting members 6,7,8 and relative connecting screws, asshown in FIGS. 1,3.

Between the plates 2 and 3, as shown in FIG. 3 a set of pinion gears9,10,! 1, 12 is mounted. The pinion gear 9 is provided at its rear endwith a splined shaft, through which it is connected with the maindriving shaft 13.

On the main driving shaft 13, as shown in FIGS. 1,9,

and 12, a bevel gear 14 is mounted so that a number of roll stands maybe driven from a common shaft 15, or a coupling may be provided, whenthe roll stands are each driven individually from a separate motor.

The driven pinion gear 9 as shown in FIG. 3 meshes with pinion gear 10.The pinion gear 9 is journaled in bearings 16 and pinion gear 10 isjournaled-in bearings 17 also mounted in the holes of bosses l8 and 19protruding from plates 2 and 5, as shown in FIG. 6.

The main driving shaft 13 is mounted in bearings 20 located in the rearplate 5. The axial forces acting on the main driving shaft 13 areresisted by thrust rings 21 and 22, fixed on this shaft, the ring 22being secured b a nut 23, as shown in FIGS. 1,9, and 12.

The axes of intermediate pinion gears 9 and 10 simultaneously, determinethe axes of rotation of the set of rolls. Thereby, the intermediate axisof the pinion gear9 is the lower fixed axis of rotation, while the axisof the intermediate pinion gear 10 is the upper fixed axis of rotation.

The intermediate pinion gear 10 meshes with the pinion gear 11,transmitting drive to the lower working roll. The drive for the upperworking roll is provided by intermediate pinion gear 10 with meshingdirect pinion gear l2.

The pinion gear 11 is journaled in bearings 26 and 27, as shown in FIGS.5 and 6. The bearings 24 and 25 are mounted in chock 28, while thebearings 26 and 27 are mounted in the chock 29.

The chocks 28 and 29 are mounted for rotary movement through any desiredangle to permit adjustment of the working rolls about fixed upper andlower axes of rotation. Thereby, the frame 28 may make a rotary movementabout the axis of boss 18 and chock 29 may have similar rotary movementabout boss 19, which extend from plates 2 and 3, as shown in FIG. 6.

The direct pinion gears 11 and 12 are toothed shafts. As shown in FIG.1, at their front ends, the pinion gear 1 1 and the pinion gear 12 areprovided with notches for connection with bevel sleeves 30, on whichbeveled clamping sleeves 31 are set, which clamp and fix in suitableposition the lower and upper working rolls 32.

For proper linking between the multi-spline connection of direct piniongears 11 and 12 with bevel sleeves 30, the roll stand is provided withtie rods 33.

The tie rods 33 are fixed at their inner ends in the direct pinion gears11 and 12 by means of plates 34, while their outer ends are threaded,and nuts 35 are screwed onto them, to press the bevel sleeves onto thesplined ends of direct pinion gears 11 ,12.

On the external diameters of nuts a thread is cut for screwing on thepressure sleeves 36 which fix in a determined position the working rolls32. To lock the nuts 35 against unscrewing, the lock nuts 38 are screwedon ties 33.

The supporting shafts 39 of back-up rolls 40 are mounted from the workside in bearings 41, and on the drive side in bearings 42. The axialforces acting on supporting shafts 39 are absorbed by thrust rings43,44, mounted on these shafts.

The bearings 41 of supporting shafts 39 for the lower back-up rolls aremounted in the lower chock 45, see FIGS. 1 and 5 while the bearings 41of supporting shafts 39 for the upper back-up rolls are mounted in theupper bearing chock 46.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 6, the bearings 42 of supporting shafts 39 forthe lower back-up rolls are mounted in the rear lower bearing chock 47,and the bearings 42 of supporting shafts 39 for upper back-up rolls aremounted in the rear upper bearing chock 48.

In order to carry out a rotary movement about the fixed axes of rotationat the required angle for adjustment of the gap between the rolls, thefront lower check 45 is provided with a pin 49 and the front upperbearing housing 46 is provided with a pin 50, as shown in F IG 5. Thepins 49 and 50 are mounted in bores in the plate 3.

In order to reduce the load on pins 49 and 50 and to increase therigidity of the bearing chocks 45 and 46, both are provided with bosses51 and 52.

To obviate rapid wear between the plate 3 and the bosses 51 and 52inserts 53 and 54 are provided, as shown in FIG. 5.

As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, to enable pivotal rotary movement of the rearlower bearing chock 47 about the fixed lower axis to provide therequired adjustment of the rolls, the chock 47 is provided with a boss55 in which a bore is made for insertion therein of the pin 56protruding from the plate 2.

Similarly, for pivotal rotary movement of the rear upper bearing chock48 about the fixed upper axis to provide for adjustment of the rolls,the chock 48 has a boss 57, in which also a bore is made to inserttherein the pin 58, protruding from the plate 2, as shown in FIG. 7.

To increase the rigidity of this arrangement the rear parts of bossesand 57 are made as circular segments, which penetrate the bosses 59 and60, protruding from plate 2, as shown in FIG. 8.

To additionally increase the rigidity the front lower bearing chock 45and the rear lower bearing chock 47, these chocks are connected by meansof tie bolts 61 and fixing sleeves 62.

Also to increase the rigidity of the front upper bearing chocks 46 andthe rear upper bearing chocks 48; these chocks are connected by means oftie bolts 61 and fixing sleeves 62.

The front parts of the supporting shafts 39, FIG. 1, are tapered andexpansion sleeves 63, fixing the position of back-up rolls 40 aremounted on these tapered front parts. The expansion bevel sleeves 65 aremounted on the bevel ends of shafts 39 are secured by means of nuts 64.

For attaching the back-up rolls 40 on supporting shafts 39, fixingsleeves 65 and 66 and pressure plates 67 pressed on by screws 68 areutilized.

For adjustment of the gaps between working rolls 32, as shown FIGS. 1and 3, the rolling mill is provided with screw 69, with right-hand andleft-hand threads. The screw 69 is screwed into a nut 70 having aright-hande thread and into a nut 71 having a left-hand thread.

The nut 70 has pins 72 protruding therefrom, while the nut 71 hassimilar pins 73. The pins 72 and 73 of the nuts 70 and 71 enter into thebores of guides 74. FIG. 1, which cooperate with nut 70 and are mountedshiftably in the front upper bearing chock 46 and the rear upper bearingchock 48.

Also, the guides 74 cooperating with nut 71 are mounted shiftably in thefront lower bearing chock 45 and the rear lower bearing chock 47.

The screw 69 is located in bearings 75 and 76. The screw 69 may berotated by means of a worm gear system consisting of worm wheel 77 andworm shaft 78. The worm shaft 78 which has in its rear part splines 79FIG. 8, which can be displaced inside the bevel gear 80.

The bevel gear 80 is journaled in a bearing chock fixed to the rearplate 5, and meshes with bevel gear 82 which journaled in a bearingchock 83 fixed to the housing of the roll stand 1.

To eliminate play between cooperating parts of the adjustment mechanismof the rolls and for prestressing, the roll stand is provided withsprings 84 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 7.

The springs 84 are located in guideways 85 and 86 which are pivotallymounted by means of bolts 87 in the front lower bearing housing 45 andthe front upper bearing housing 46, and the rear lower bearing housing47 and the rear upper bearing housing 48.

In order to exert a suitable preliminary pressure to the lower workingroll 32 from the lower back-up rolls 40 and to the upper working roll 32from the upper back-up rolls 40 the roll stand is provided with drivingcylinders 88 and 89, FIGS. 1, 5 and 6.

The driving cylinders 88 are located between plates 2 and 3 and fixed tothe frame 28 and to cantilevered lower plates 90, as well as to theframe 29 and to the cantilevered upper plates 91 as shown in FIG. 6.

The cantilevered lower plates 90 are fastened by means of screws, one tothe front lower bearing housing 45, the other to the rear lower bearinghousing 47.

Also, the cantilevered upper plates 91 are fastened by means of screwsto the front upper bearing housing 46 and to the rear upper bearinghousing 48.

To protect the rolls against excessive preliminary pressure, stops 92are built in the frame 28, and further.

in the cantilevered lower plates 90 stops 93 are provided. Stops 94 and95 are provided in the upper frame 29, and in the cantilevered upperplates 91, respectively.

The driving cylinder 89 is fixed at one end to the frame 28, and withthe other end to the frame 29, as shown in FIG. 5.

For rough positioning of rolls in their axial movement together withplates 2 and 3 and mechanisms built on plates and between plates, theroll stand has the driving cylinder 96, shown in FIG. 1, which isfastened at one end to the plate 2 and at the other end to a mounting 97joined with the rear plate 5 by means of screws.

For precise positioning of rolls into the required position, the rollstand is provided with driving cylinder 98, FIG. 7, which is fastened totwo catch mechanisms 99 situated in guideways 100.

In order to protect all mechanisms contained within the housing of theroll stand 1 while moving the rolls in a direction perpendicular to theline of rolling against noxious external conditions, to the plate 3 fromthe roll side a shield 101, FIGS. 1 and 4, sealed by means of rings 102and packings 103, is fastened.

Also, for the purpose of protection against external influences on allmechanisms within the housing of the stand 1 during adjustment of rolls,the roll stand is provided with sealing plates 104 and 105 and sealinginserts, the lower sealing insert 106 and the upper sealing insert 107,as shown in FIGS. 4,10,13. On the side of rolls, the roll stand has alower shield 108 and an upper shield 109.

When a common drive is applied for a plurality of stands, as shown inthe embodiments in FIGS. 1,9,12, the roll stand is provided with lowerhousing 110 and upper housing 111 for mounting acommon driving shaft 15and shielding the bevel gears.

The roll stand is equipped with couplings 112, FIG. 2, secured to theends of shaft 15.

In the embodiment of the roll stand, as shown in FIGS. 9,10,11, theshafts 113 of back-up rolls 40 are journaled in bearings 114 located inpivotal plates 115 as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10.

The pivotal plates 115 are mounted on eccentric shafts 116 journalled inbearings 117. The eccentric shafts 116 are journaled in bearings 118 and119. The bearings 118 are mounted in plate 3 and the boss protrudingfrom plate 3, while the bearings 119 are mounted in plate 2.

For adjustment of the gap between working rolls 32, like in theembodiment shown in FIGS. 1,3, the rolling mill is provided with screw63, which screw has a righthand and left-hand thread.

The screw 63 is screwed into nut 70 having the righthand thread, andinto nut 71 having the left-hand thread. The nut 70 has pins 72projecting therefrom, and the nut 71 has similar pins 73. The pins 72and 73 of nuts 70 and 71 enter into bores of tie bolts 121.

The tie bolts 12 1 are connected in an articulated manner through bolts122 with arms 123 protruding from sleeve 124. The sleeves 124 areconnected with eccentric shafts 116 by means of splines 125. The sleeves124 are fixed on eccentric shafts 116 by means of flanged sleeves 126.

The screw 63 is seated in bearings 75 and 76. The shell 75 is located inmounting 127, while the bearing 76 is located in mounting 128. Themountings 127 and 128 are fastened to the plate 3.

For exerting a suitable initial pressure between the working roll 32 andthe lower back-up rolls 40 and between the upper working roll 32 to theupper backup rolls 40, the roll stand is provided with driving cylinders88. The driving cylinders 88 are mounted between plates 2 and 3 andfixed to the plates 2 and 3 and frames 28,29.

In order to protect all mechanisms contained inside the housing of thestand 1 from harmful external influences, while the rolls are moved in adirection trans verse of the rolling line, the plate 3 is sealed bymeans of rings 102 and packings 103.

Also, to protect the mechanisms contained inside the housing of thestand 1 from harmful external influences during adjustment of the gapbetween rolls, the roll stand is provided with lower sealing insert 106and upper sealing insert 107.

In the further embodiment of the roll support or stand, as shown inFIGS. 12,13, the shafts 113 of backup rolls 40 are journaled in bearings114 mounted in pivotal plates 129. The pivotal plates 129 are journalledin bearings 130 inserted in chocks 131 which are mounted on rockers 132.g

The rockers 132 are mounted in articulated manner on bolts 133 locatedin the boss 134 protruding from the plate 3.

For mounting the pivotal plates 129 the rolling mill is provided withshafts 135 and 136. The shaft 135 has one end cut with a right-handthread, and the other end provided with a tapered pin. The shaft 136 hasone end cut with a left-hand thread and the other end is provided with atapered pin.

The shaft 135 is screwed into a nut 137 which has a right-hand thread.The shaft 136 is screwed into a nut 138 having the left-hand thread.

The nuts 137 and 138 are mounted and fixed in sleeves 139 and 140, whichare connected with worm wheel 141 through the groove 142, and the wormwheel 141 meshes with the worm 143 located in a mounting 144.

The shifts 135 and 136 have guideways 145 and 146. For adjustment of thegap between the working rolls the rolling mill in the embodiment shownin FIGS. 12,13 is provided with screws 147 which have righthand andleft-hand threads.

The screws 147 are screwed into nuts 148 having a right-hand thread, andnuts 149 having a left-hand thread.

The nuts 148 have covers 150, with pins 151 protruding therefrom. Also,from the nuts 149 protrude pins 152. The pins 151 and 152 penetratebores of tie bolts 153 connected in an articulated manner with rockers132 across pins 154.

The pins 154 are fixed in sleeves 155. The screws 147 are rotated bymeans of worm gearing, consisting of worm wheels 156 and worm shaft 157.

The worm wheels 156 are journalled in bearings 158 and 159, the bearings158 being secured to nuts 148, and bearings 159 to covers 150.

The worm shaft 157, in order to be rotated, is provided with a squarepin at its front end protruding outside the nut 148 and cover 150.

For balancing the shafts 114 of back-up rolls 40 of pivotal plates 129and rockers 132 and for continuous elimination of play between screw 147and nuts 148 and 149, the roll stand is provided with driving cylinders160 fastened in articulated manner to the boss 134 of the front plate 3and to rockers 132, as shown in FIG. 13.

The shifting of rolls in a direction perpendicular to the rolling linein a required position is effected by operating the driving cylinder 96to perform a rough displacement, and by operating the driving cylinder98 for precise shifting of rolls which causes the spring catches 99 toengage precisely cut notches on columns 4 and locate the rolls in therequired position.

Prior to consequent displacement of rolls into the required position andbefore operating the driving cylinder 96, performing a rough adjustment,the spring catches 99 are first loosened by the driving cylinder 98 toeffect the return movement.

After completing the rough displacement by means of the driving cylinder96, the driving cylinder 98 is again actuated.

The working rolls 32 are adjusted in a symmetrical manner in relation tothe rolling line, with the result that the theoretical rolling lineremains constant independently of the size of gap between the workingrolls 32.

The adjustment of back up rolls is effectedby driving a shaft withriotched bevel gear 82 which causes the rotation of the bevel gear 80which is in mesh with it.

' The-bevel gear 80 drives the worm shaft 78 and permits a drivetransmission of drive independently of the adjustment of working rolls32.

The worm shaft 78 drives the worm wheel 77 fixed on screw 69. The rotarymovement of screw 69 causes through nuts and 71 and guides 74 the upperbearing chock 46 together with the upper bearing chock 45 and the rearlower bearing chock 47, depending on the direction of rotation of bevelgear 82.

The relative rotary movement of these bearing chocks about the upperfixed axis of rotation and lower fixed axis of rotation, causes theshafts 39 with back-up rolls mounted on their ends to make the samemovement.

The working rolls are pressed onto the back-up rolls 40 by means of thedriving cylinders 88,89 and frames 28,29 and cantilevered plates 90,91.Thus, a rotary movement about fixed axes of rotation performed byback-up rolls 40 involves the same movement of working rolls 32.

A reduction or increasing of the distance between the axes of theworking rolls 32 is effected by suitable rotation of the shaft withnotched bevel wheel 82.

The drive of cluster mill with cantilevered rolls, depending onrequirements, is transmitted either from the driving shaft across thebevel wheel 14 on the main driving shaft 13, as shown in FIGS. 19,12 orby the intermediary of a clutch mounted on the main driving shaft 15,when for driving the roll stand an individual driving motor or a spurgear with driving shaft protruding to enable the drive of roll stand isused.

The torque from the main driving shaft 13 is transmitted to the splinedshaft of the intermediate pinion gear 9 which is driven independentlyfrom the position of the working rolls in a direction perpendicular tothe rolling line, since the spline shaft of the intermediate pinion gear9 can be displaced inside the main driving shaft 13 but remains in meshwith the shaft, as shown in FIGS. 1,9,12.

The intermediate pinion gear 9 meshes with the other intermediate piniongear 10 separating thus the drive on the lower working roll 32 and theupper working roll 32.

The drive of the lower working roll 32 is affected through direct piniongear 11. On the other hand, the drive of the upper working roll 32 iseffected by the direct pinion gear 12.

Thus, in adjustment of a required distance between axes of workingrolls, the direct pinion gears 11 and 12 driving the working rolls 32,are travelling about pitch I diameters of the intermediate pinion gears9 and 10, without alteration of the gearing characteristic.

Changing of one of the working rolls 32 is effected by partiallyremoving the nut 38, removing the nut 37 and press sleeves 36 andpartial removal of the nut 36 thus enabling the loosening of clampingsleeves 31.

After loosening the clamping sleeves 31 the working rolls 32 can bereadily removed. The refitting of working rolls 32 is effected in thesame way, but in reverse sequence.

Changing of back-up rolls is effected by partial removal of adjustingscrews 68, removing clamping plates 67 and partial removal of the nuts64 and loosening the clamping tapered sleeves 63, then the back-up roll40 can easily be removed. The refitting of the backup rolls is carriedout in'the same way but in reverse sequence.

The setting of the gap between the working rolls 32 in the embodimentshown in FIGS. 1,10,11, is effected by rotating the bevel gear 82.

The bevel gear 80 drives the worm shaft 78 mounted slidably therein. Thesplines 79 of the worm shaft 78 ensure a transmission of the torqueindependently of the adjustment of the working rolls 32.

The worm shaft 78 drives the worm wheel 77 fixed on screw 63. Rotationof the screw 63 causes rotation of the eccentric shaft 116 through nutsand 71, tie

rolls 40 by means of driving cylinders 88 and frames 28 and 29.

Thus, by an inward and outward movement of backup rolls 40 asimultaneous movement of working rolls 32 is effected. The direction ofthis movement depends on the direction of rotation of the shaft withnotched bevel gear 82.

The adjustment of the working rolls 32 in the embodiment of the rollstand shown in FIGS. 12,13, is carried out by rotating the worm shaft157, which causes the revolution of worm wheels 156.

The rotary movement of screws 147 causes through nuts 148,149, tie bolts153, rockers 132, the appropriate movement of the pivotal plates 129, inwhich the back-up rolls are mounted. The inward and outward movement ofback-up rolls 40 depends on the direction of rotation of the worm shaft157.

To enable rapid change of back-up rolls 40 in the roll stand in theembodiment shown in FIGS. 12,13, in pivotal plates 129 worm wheels 141are mounted, the worm wheels being rotated by worms 143.

The worm wheels 141 transmit the torque on nuts 137 and 138, whichcauses a displacement of the shafts 135, 136. Depending on the directionof rotation of the worms 143, the shafts 135 and 136 move to cause theremoval of tapered pins of these shafts from bearings 130 or move in theother direction whereupon the tapered pins of shafts and 136 penetratebearings 130 and are clamped therein.

The above described cluster mills according to the present invention arecapable of rolling metals, preferably rods and bars with cantileveredworking rolls of small diameter with practical elimination of rollbending even with a considerable length of the working roll barrel, onwhich a number of pass grooves, depending on the requirements, are cut,whereby the capability is provided for moving the rolls in a directiontransverse to the rolling line.

The above cluster mills according to the present invention do not havedisadvantages of roll stands used hitherto. On the contrary, they show anumber of important advantages, the main of which is the possibility ofusing working rolls of small diameter limiting spread and enlargingelongation.

Another advantage is the capability of employing long working rollbarrels, on which grooves can be cut depending on requirements such aspass dimensions.

A further advantage consists in the fact that the roll stand has noconnecting members for driving the working rolls, whereby, in setting upthe working rolls, the gearing characteristic is not subject to anyalteration.

Another advantage is the capability of exact displacement of the workingrolls on which grooves are cut and setting these rolls into the requiredposition.

We claim:

1. A cluster mill for rolling metal stock comprising:

a housing having a transverse fixed plate therein;

a first movable plate in spaced relation to said fixed plate andgenerally parallel thereto, and a second movable plate between saidfirst movable plate and said fixed plate, and spaced from and parallelto said plates;

means in said housing transverse to said fixed plate having said movableplates in sliding relation thereto for guiding said movable plates;

means connecting said movable plates to each other;

a pair of adjacent working rolls on the side of the first movable plateremote from said second movable plate;

backup rolls in juxtaposition with said working rolls on the side of thefirst movable plate remote from said second movable plate;

means extending through said first movable plate for supporting saidrolls in cantilever manner;

means between said movable plates for driving said working rolls, and

means between said movable plates for adjusting said working rolls.

2. The cluster mill of claim I wherein said means for driving saidworking rolls comprises a first chock and a second chock, means forpivotally mounting said chocks on a said movable plate, a firstintermediate pinion gear passing through said last mentioned movableplate with the axis thereof coincident with the pivotal axis of the saidfirst chock and a second intermediate pinion gear having its axiscoincident with the pivotal axis of said second chock, said intermediatepinion gears being in mesh, a first direct pinion gear carried by saidfirst chock and in mesh with said first intermediate pinion gear and asecond direct pinion gear carried by said second chock and in mesh withsaid second intermediate pinion gear, and means for axially connectingeach said direct pinion gear with a said working roll.

3. The cluster mill of claim 2, wherein there are an upper working rolland a pair of upper back up rolls and a lower working roll and a pair oflower back up rolls, said means for supporting said back up rollscomprising shafts and first and second chock means for supporting saidupper and lower back up rolls respectively, and means pivotallysupporting each said chock means for movement on an axis coincident witha said axis.

4. The cluster mill of claim 1, and further comprising means for movingsaid movable plates relative to said fixed plate and in the direction ofthe axes of said rolls.

5. The cluster mill of claim 4, wherein said last mentioned meanscomprises means for effecting a rough adjustment and means for effectinga fine adjustment.

6. The cluster mill of claim 5, said rough adjustment means comprisingcylinder means extending in the direction of the roll axes.

7. The cluster mill of claim 5, said fine adjusting means comprisingcylinder means extending transverse to the roll axis direction and meansoperatively connecting said last mentioned cylinder means to a saidplate and said movable plate guide means.

8. The cluster mill of claim 1, and further comprising sealing meansbetween said housing and said supporting means and carried by said firstmovable plate.

9. A cluster mill for rolling metal stock comprising:

a housing having a transverse fixed plate therein;

a second plate generally parallel to said first plate and spacedtherefrom, and mounted for transverse movement;

first and second working rolls in juxtaposition on the side of saidsecond plate remote from said fixed plate;

said working rolls 4 a pair of back up rolls in uxtaposition with eachsaid working roll;

a pair of spaced plates supporting each pair of back up rolls;

means for pivotally supporting each said pair of back up roll supportingplates, on said second plate;

and means for moving said pairs of back up roll supporting plates andthe back up rolls supported thereby to and from each other.

30. The cluster mill of claim 9, wherein said pivotal supporting meanscomprises a shaft for each pair of supporting plates journalled in saidsecond plate and said last mentioned means comprising eccentric portionsof said shaft to which a pair of said supporting plates are journalled,and means for rotating said shafts.

11. The cluster mill of claim 9, wherein said means for supporting andmoving said back up roll supporting plates comprises rocker means foreach pair of plates, means for pivotally supporting each said rockermeans from said second plate, means for pivotally connecting each saidpair of plates to a said rocker means, said means for moving said pairsof supporting plates comprising means for moving said rocker means.

12. The cluster mill of claim 11, wherein said last mentioned meanscomprises a pair of tie bolts each connected to a said rocker means, andnut and screw means connected to said tie bolts and having a worm wheelmeshing with a worm shaft.

13. The cluster mill of claim 11, wherein said means for pivotallyconnecting each said pair of plates to a said rocker means comprisesmulti-part shaft means carried by said pair of plates having the partsthereof axially movable and normally extending into said rocker means,and means for moving said multi-part shaft means axially to decrease thelength thereof to a length no greater than the spacing of said pair ofplates, whereby to permit withdrawal of said multi-part shaft means fromsaid rocker means.

14. A cluster mill for wolling metal stock comprising:

a housing;

a pair of working rolls;

means for rotatably supporting said working rolls from said housing;back up roll means in juxtaposition with each said working roll;

means for supporting said back up roll means comprising a pair of spacedplates having a back up roll journalled therein;

a second pair of spaced plates outwardly of said pair of supportingplates;

multi-part shaft means pivotally connecting said supporting plates tosaid second pair of plates, and means for disconnecting said supportingplates and said pair of plates comprising means for moving said shaftmeans axially.

1. A cluster mill for rolling metal stock comprising: a housing having atransverse fixed plate therein; a first movable plate in spaced relationto said fixed plate and generally parallel thereto, and a second movableplate between said first movable plate and said fixed plate, and spacedfrom and parallel to said plates; means in said housing transverse tosaid fixed plate having said movable plates in sliding relation theretofor guiding said movable plates; means connecting said movable plates toeach other; a pair of adjacent working rolls on the side of the firstmovable plate remote from said second movable plate; backup rolls injuxtaposition with said working rolls on the side of the first movableplate remote from said second movable plate; means extending throughsaid first movable plate for supporting said rolls in cantilever manner;means between said movable plates for driving said working rolls, andmeans between said movable plates for adjusting said working rolls. 2.The cluster mill of claim 1, wherein said means for driving said workingrolls comprises a first chock and a second chock, means for pivotallymounting said chocks on a said movable plate, a first intermediatepinion gear passing through said last mentioned movable plate with theaxis thereof coincident with the pivotal axis of the said first chockand a second intermediate pinion gear having its axis coincident withthe pivotal axis of said second chock, said intermediate pinion gearsbeing in mesh, a first direct pinion gear carried by said first chockand in mesh with said first intermediate pinion gear and a second directpinion gear carried by said second chock and in mesh with said secondintermediate pinion gear, and means for axially connecting each saiddirect pinion gear with a said working roll.
 3. The cluster mill ofclaim 2, wherein there are an upper working roll and a pair of upperback up rolls and a lower working roll and a pair of lower back uprolls, said means for supporting said back up rolls comprising shaftsand first and second chock means for supporting said upper and lowerback up rolls respectively, and means pivotally supporting each saidchock means for movement on an axis coincident with a said axis.
 4. Thecluster mill of claim 1, and further comprising means for moving saidmovable plates relative to said fixed plate and in the direction of theaxes of said rolls.
 5. The cluster mill of claim 4, wherein said lastmentioned means compRises means for effecting a rough adjustment andmeans for effecting a fine adjustment.
 6. The cluster mill of claim 5,said rough adjustment means comprising cylinder means extending in thedirection of the roll axes.
 7. The cluster mill of claim 5, said fineadjusting means comprising cylinder means extending transverse to theroll axis direction and means operatively connecting said last mentionedcylinder means to a said plate and said movable plate guide means. 8.The cluster mill of claim 1, and further comprising sealing meansbetween said housing and said supporting means and carried by said firstmovable plate.
 9. A cluster mill for rolling metal stock comprising: ahousing having a transverse fixed plate therein; a second plategenerally parallel to said first plate and spaced therefrom, and mountedfor transverse movement; first and second working rolls in juxtapositionon the side of said second plate remote from said fixed plate; means forsupporting said working rolls extending through said second plate; meansbetween said plates for driving and adjusting said working rolls; a pairof back up rolls in juxtaposition with each said working roll; a pair ofspaced plates supporting each pair of back up rolls; means for pivotallysupporting each said pair of back up roll supporting plates, on saidsecond plate; and means for moving said pairs of back up roll supportingplates and the back up rolls supported thereby to and from each other.10. The cluster mill of claim 9, wherein said pivotal supporting meanscomprises a shaft for each pair of supporting plates journalled in saidsecond plate and said last mentioned means comprising eccentric portionsof said shaft to which a pair of said supporting plates are journalled,and means for rotating said shafts.
 11. The cluster mill of claim 9,wherein said means for supporting and moving said back up rollsupporting plates comprises rocker means for each pair of plates, meansfor pivotally supporting each said rocker means from said second plate,means for pivotally connecting each said pair of plates to a said rockermeans, said means for moving said pairs of supporting plates comprisingmeans for moving said rocker means.
 12. The cluster mill of claim 11,wherein said last mentioned means comprises a pair of tie bolts eachconnected to a said rocker means, and nut and screw means connected tosaid tie bolts and having a worm wheel meshing with a worm shaft. 13.The cluster mill of claim 11, wherein said means for pivotallyconnecting each said pair of plates to a said rocker means comprisesmulti-part shaft means carried by said pair of plates having the partsthereof axially movable and normally extending into said rocker means,and means for moving said multi-part shaft means axially to decrease thelength thereof to a length no greater than the spacing of said pair ofplates, whereby to permit withdrawal of said multi-part shaft means fromsaid rocker means.
 14. A cluster mill for wolling metal stockcomprising: a housing; a pair of working rolls; means for rotatablysupporting said working rolls from said housing; back up roll means injuxtaposition with each said working roll; means for supporting saidback up roll means comprising a pair of spaced plates having a back uproll journalled therein; a second pair of spaced plates outwardly ofsaid pair of supporting plates; multi-part shaft means pivotallyconnecting said supporting plates to said second pair of plates, andmeans for disconnecting said supporting plates and said pair of platescomprising means for moving said shaft means axially.